Hamilton : Détention secrète

When the chief of Swedish Security Agency Eva Tanguy (Frida Hallgren) avoids an assassination of a political leader that is visiting Sweden, she accepts to give an interview to the press and her words are twisted by the journalists. Soon her seven-year daughter Nathalie (Nadja Christiansson) is kidnapped in a park. The girl is the goddaughter of Carl Hamilton (Mikael Persbrandt) that investigate the case. He follows leads to United Kingdom and finds where Nathalie is and that he should not rely on his secret service that is compromised. He summons Mouna Al Fathar (Saba Mubarak), Nathalie's father Pierre Tanguy (Reuben Sallmander), who was a member of the French Foreign Legion and the mercenary Patrik Wärnstrand (Peter Eggers) to rescue Nathalie from the fortress of the terrorists.

"Men inte om det gäller din dotter", a.k.a."Agent Hamilton: But Not If It Concerns Your Daughter", is another great Swedish action movie with the character Carl Hamilton. The plot follows the action of 007 or other good spy movies and the only problem is the language. If you have not seen this movie yet, please be advised that it is worthwhile watching. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Agente H - Missão Resgate" ("Agent H - Rescue Mission")

I liked this Jan Guillau-novel when I read it two years ago, and as far as I remember this film follows the book quite OK. OtherS has written it doesn't, but except for using never technology and coffee machines, this is quite close.

I think Mikael Persbrandt is good as agent Hamilton, but the start if the film fails elegantly to engage me. Even when the little girl is kidnapped, the movie has managed to establish the needed sympathy. A film where one doesn't really route for the protagonists, will fail when it comes to be successful as a thriller. Here's a typical example of one.

A pity really, since I was looking forward to a ride like I had when reading the book. It looks like director Tobias Falk hasn't been up to the task of making this function, or maybe it's also the screenwriters faults. Less probable, since Stefan Thunberg has written the Wallanderfilms as well as the second outing of "The Hunters".

OK, but not much more.

Since I'm a fan of the plot in the book "Men inte om det gäller din dotter" and I think that it more than well would be a really OK Hamilton-movie I got disappointed just five minutes into the movie. It has almost no resemblance what so ever with the original and it is so bad that I wonder if Guillou himself accepted the script. The last movie withs Persbrandt as Hamilton was good! I liked how the story was moved into todays world. But all the changes in this one is just horrific. I can see that if one watches this movie as a solitaire, it's OK. But still, you almost need to have read the decalogue about Hamilton to understand some of what happens. Actors performances is what makes my vote go from a minus 5 to a +2

Of course, Hamilton is no genuine Swedish spy/detective anymore, he has become a fighter in an international battlefield where terrorism, spread of values and use of natural resources are often related or intertwined, and where a small(er) country has a role of younger brother... Real decisions and actions are taken somewhere high and far away. Nevertheless, the pace is still there, actors are good and chasing/ambush scenes are catchy to follow. Well, some topics and understandings may be simplified and too black-and-fight, but - on the other hand - one cannot ponder so much on right-and-wrong in a film shorter than 1,5 hours. The ending appears too suddenly and is rather trivial, I would have expected some twist or unexpected nuance.

But still, Hamilton: Men inte om det gäller din dotter is neither disappointment nor boring, and it is definitely no US admiring film.

HAMILTON: BUT NOT IF IT CONCERNS YOUR DAUGHTER is a Swedish thriller, based on a popular novel character, and a follow-up to HAMILTON: IN THE INTEREST OF THE NATION. This is a lesser sequel in every respect, with a story that somehow manages to be more simplified and more complex at the same time; as well as that, it's not particularly suspenseful as a movie. Watching this you realise just how good the original film was.

Still, it's not all bad, and HAMILTON 2 certainly isn't a poor film by any means. The tale of international terrorism and political machinations is a well-written one, so it's just a shame than the central thriller plot is so basic. Hamilton goes around and questions suspects and then embarks on a mission to rescue his kidnapped goddaughter. That's all there is to it, and the ending in particular is oddly anti-climatic, leaving you wondering 'is that it?'

Fans will find the production values remain strong after the first movie, and the acting is also of a superior quality. I wouldn't have minded the basic storyline had it propped up some strong action scenes, but the action is very limited here and not particularly well shot by director Tobias Falk, who previously directed some BATTLE FRONT video games. However, Mikael Persbrandt is an engaging and charismatic screen presence, so it's a pity he doesn't have as much to get his teeth into as he did in the last film. Seba Mubarak also returns in support, and Frida Hallgren does good work as the crusading light. Watch out for cameoing British stars Steven Waddington, David Rintoul, and Cal MacAninch.